Obama: Omar investigation should ‘outrage all Americans’

Former President Obama has weighed in on the federal government’s criminal investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) over accusations of immigration fraud, accusing the Trump administration of targeting its political opponents.

In a lengthy post on the social platform X, Obama claimed the probe was an attempt to strip Omar of her U.S. citizenship and possibly deport her over her public criticisms of Trump.

“It is a basic principle of American democracy that the government can’t selectively target individuals simply because of their political beliefs or what they say,” Obama said. “But that’s exactly what the Trump Administration is doing to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.”

Obama’s remarks come nearly a week after federal agents raided Omar’s Washington, D.C., home and seized her phone as part of a criminal investigation into her immigration paperwork.

Following accusations from Trump and other GOP figures of immigration fraud, investigators are examining whether Omar or her father provided false information during their naturalization process when she was a child.

No charges have been filed against the Minnesota Democrat, and she has denied all allegations, claiming she is being politically targeted.

Obama also refuted the allegations, saying Omar, who was born in Somalia, arrived in the U.S. with her father when she was 12 and automatically became a citizen when she was 17 after her father was naturalized.

He accused the administration of pursuing an “unsubstantiated theory” that Omar was actually 18 at the time, which would have required her to apply for citizenship separately.

“The full weight of the federal government is being brought down on a law-abiding elected official because she has dared to criticize the president,” Obama said.

Trump has denied involvement in the investigation, previously telling reporters that the matter was up to the Justice Department.

“I’ve always found her to be totally crooked, personally, but that has nothing to do with me,” Trump said.

Obama also cited federal investigations involving New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI director James Comey as examples of what he described as the administration’s pattern of targeting perceived political enemies.

He said those cases had either stalled or been dismissed and predicted that the investigation into Omar would face a similar outcome. 

“But not before Congresswoman Omar’s life has been turned upside down, her legal bills have piled up, and she’s been forced to spend time fighting unsubstantiated charges instead of serving the people of Minnesota,” he said.

“If this becomes the new normal, there’s no reason to believe it will stop with her — or that future presidents, in either party, won’t do the same.”